India’s LBGT community and their supporters showed up in record numbers to march in Mumbai’s 7th annual gay pride parade. Many were there to protest the January Supreme Court decision to uphold India’s controversial ban on gay sex. Enacted in 1860, section 377 of the Indian Penal Code criminalizes any sex that is not penile-vaginal. Offenders are looking at 10 years to life if convicted, a harsher penalty than rapists face in India.
“We just want the courts and the society to let us be the way we are,”F says Shane Lonen, a fashion stylist from Mumbai, who sported huge feathered wings as part of his costume. “We are born this way. You can’t make us criminal.”
The Delhi High Court agreed in 2009 and decriminalized gay sex between consenting adults. The landmark decision was a huge victory for gay activism in India and gave many gay people the courage to come out and reveal their sexuality. But in December of last year, the Supreme Court overturned that decision. Just one week ago, it refused to review the petition again.
“The recent Supreme Court judgments have lead many into insecurity again,” says gay activist Ankit Bhuptani. “You fear that revealing yourself as gay would cause people to beat you up, because you are a criminal once again.”
Many struggle to hide their sexuality from family and coworkers, going as far as to agree to arranged marriages with members of the opposite sex. Identical twin brothers Yogi and Nish Muley were lucky; their father accepted their homosexuality. Now they counsel families in Mumbai.
“We try to talk with the parents and tell them that homosexuality is not a mental problem or a disease. The more pressure a person faces to hide their sexuality, the more they are driven to commit suicide. Would you rather have a gay child than a dead one?”
It is known as Mumbai’s Queer Azaadi March. Azaadi is Hindi for “freedom.” It was a march for freedom, and Vocativ was there.
Courtesy – Vocativ
Gay Aawaz 